The Capital’s cultural melting pot is already on fire, and now an addition to the piping hot brew of culture and art is a generous potion by different ethnic groups of India.

The Capital’s cultural melting pot is already on fire, and now an addition to the piping hot brew of culture and art is a generous potion by different ethnic groups of India.

The 20th edition of the New Delhi Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA) Tribal Festival to be held in the city will present 15 cultural groups, such as Oraon, Munda, Santhals, Ho, Kharia and Chik Baraik from Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh and Mukkuvar from Kerala and Tamil Nadu among others.

At the daylong festival, the exhibits by ethnic groups promise to be a quick getaway for urbanites looking for some ethnic exploration, while a performance by a rock-cum-gospel band will add an entertaining note.

“The festival is an annual feature on the city’s culture calendar. Each year we see performances by different groups from all parts of India. The main objective of this endeavour is not only to create bonds, but also to promote the cultural talent of these groups, and to make city-dwellers witness it,” says Ian Goodwin, associate general secretary, Department of Culture and Tribal Affairs, New Delhi YMCA.

The first such culture festival in the Capital was held on February 7, 1993, with over 3000 participants. Since then it has become an annual feature of the association, where handicrafts are put up for sale, and varieties of traditional food are laid out for experimental food lovers.

“The food is a hit everywhere with visitors. Since most of the participating groups are rice-eaters, the variety of food made of rice is immense,” says Goodwin.

But what’s a cultural gala without song and dance? Keeping that in mind, a mini stage will also be set up at the festival to host song and dance performances by the different participating ethnic groups.